Could it be appendicitis still?

[Whereareallthejellyfish]

Hi all,

DH has had abdo pain for a couple of days, started above his navel and has moved down to the lower right. Early this morning he was cold, clammy and nauseous. Made him call 111 (he doesn't like to make a fuss) and they advised A&E, take an overnight bag

Off we went to A&E, he had blood tests and was poked and prodded by Dr, lots of pain when Dr pressing in certain area, especially when the Dr quickly removed his hand from his abdomen after pressing

Bloods normal, so has been sent home to 'watch and wait' as his pain level when no one is touching the area is at about a 4-5 out of 10, so not 'painful enough'. We are to go back if it's not improved within 24 hours or he gets worse.

I cannot fault A&E, they were brilliant, staff all friendly and Dr very thorough

I am just wondering if anyone has had appendicitis where the pain wasn't too bad until the area was pressed and whether it got worse or what happened? Or if anyone has had similar and it turned out to be something else?

Yes appendicitis can be diagnosed through pressure placed on a specific part of the abdomen however it is usually confirmed by CT/ultrasound - is your DH returning for that? It is quite normal for a conservative management approach ie if it can be treated by antibiotics if the pain is not so great, but if it doesn’t respond or gets worse the usual option is appendectomy. However without that imaging confirmation at the moment it is just moderately painful abdomen pain which could have a number of causes for which (again) conservative management (ie does it go away by itself in a short period of waiting time) is appropriate [this is my experience as a surgical nurse]

Thank you @Knockon, that's really helpful. I was surprised they didn't want to do a CT/ultrasound, this hasn't been mentioned at all so I guess they're happy to just wait and see

My husband had surgery and bowel resection following appendicitis (ruptured appendix somehow wrapped round and cut off the bowel, 6 hour complex surgery) several weeks ago.

He had general abdominal pain for 4 days (unbelievably he also had an unrelated minor fistula surgery with appendicitis during this period, as he didn't know then - he has a high pain threshold!). The pain then Localised to the lower right. Went to the chemist after 6 days, chemist sent him to GP, GP sent straight to a surgical assessment department at hospital bypassing A&E. they did a CT scan within a few hours which confirmed ruptured appendix and was in theatre within 30 mins of the scan results.

So I'm surprised they haven't scanned him as if it ruptures I don't think he would know. It does sound like appendicitis. Personally if the pain increases or even just persists at the same level I would be going back. Just not worth the risk. My husband then got an infected wound and was almost septic (I know the signs as he went into septic shock earlier this year - I've had better years!) and had to have more surgery to drain the wounds.

The danger I believe is that if it ruptures bacteria is released in to other areas of the body.

I had appendicitis while I was pregnant and my pain was pretty bad but still not the worst pain I'd ever felt (comparing it to previous labours), I didn't have a fever or vomiting or any of the 'normal' symptoms except for the stomach pain, had it out and they said it was almost ruptured, so very lucky.
I'm surprised they sent your DH home as it sounds like it should definitely be taken out

@toomanydicksonthedancefloor1 oh my goodness your poor DH and poor you! What a year you've had, I really hope the rest of it is drama free. Thank you so much for the info. They've said if no improvement within 24 hours go back so we'll definitely be back in the morning if he is the same.

@workworkworkugh that's interesting that you had no other clinical signs either, thank you for sharing your experience. I am watching him like a hawk at the moment (he likes to brush these things off) ready to take him back to A&E

Thank you. As the pp has just mentioned, I think it's worth saying again, my husband's pain was a bad stomach ache but he wasn't doubled over screaming and crying in pain. We went to work and went out for a walk, took the kids out etc. I always imagined it would be really obvious but it wasn't. Just thankful our pharmacist and GP were so good. Wishing you all the best and hope it'll he's feeling better soon.

When I had appendicitis recently, I had mild pain for a day and the next day I was in agony and could barely breathe.

I had emergency surgery and later found out that it wasn't infected, but full of dangerous polyps. If I'd been given antibiotics, I would have had a spread of cancer by now.